


As We Lay

by PhunkyBrewster



Category: Jane the Virgin (TV)
Genre: F/M, One Shot, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-25
Updated: 2014-11-25
Packaged: 2018-02-26 22:57:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2669531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhunkyBrewster/pseuds/PhunkyBrewster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Let's just lay here...just for a little while. Jane/Rafael. One-shot. I own nothing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	As We Lay

She suspected that her thumb was now moving on autopilot, tapping the space bar for the umpteenth time while she struggled with how to proceed. Reading the previous sentence over once again, Jane began to wonder if she had succeeded in making the hotel sound _too_ sexy. The first draft of the press release made Marbella sound like a Disney cruise. This time it was beginning to sound closer to a brothel. For a second she wondered how Lina would feel knowing that her faltering concentration was leading her to write something that essentially pimped her out as a "gorgeous siren eager to lure our treasured guests to an unforgettably pleasurable experience." Cringing, Jane's pinky stretched to the corner of the largest sections of keys. _Backspace backspace backspace_. She'd been the hotel's Public Relations specialist for over a month. How was it still this difficult to strike the perfect balance between alluring and…not seedy?

Heaving a great sigh, Jane gazed out of the large window for the sixth time. The sky was steadily greying, which was a shame. She was much more productive in sunshine. This somber weather made her want to curl up in bed and fall asleep. In all honesty it didn't take much these days to encourage any degree of exhaustion in her; it just came with the territory of sharing most of her body's resources with an adorable parasite. Briefly hypnotized by the palm fronds swaying in the confident breeze, her right hand found its usual spot on her rounded belly, just above her slightly protruding belly button. She felt a slow roll, almost like he or she was shying away from her touch like a sluggish teenager not wanting to rise for school.

"Can't blame you, kid," she sighed, trying to fight her own rapidly approaching sluggishness. Shaking her head, she snapped her attention back to the computer screen with her fingers poised over the appropriate keys. As her brain remained blank, her fingers stayed still.

"C'mon, Jane. Think a little," she hissed to herself. As her fingertips lightly tapped the plastic of the keyboard, her peripheral vision began to pull her focus once again. This time her attention landed just over the screen and onto the plush queen size bed just beyond the desk. The sight of the bed typically made her groan as it served as a reminder of the favoritism that Rafael and his father had shown her. There were plenty of offices within the hotel that would have worked just fine, turning one of the smaller rooms into a makeshift office seemed unnecessary.

But now, though she still found it excessive, she also found it mildly inviting. Jane considered taking a few moments to just lay on top of the comforter. She wouldn't close her eyes…she'd just get a little more comfortable while she gave her brain a much needed rest. Taking the corner of her bottom lip in-between her teeth, she considered the bed for a moment longer. She had shown a commendable amount of restraint up to this point, avoiding the bed for the entire month since her promotion. A ten minute break wouldn't be the worst thing.

Despite her grown belly's insistence on anchoring her to the seat, she placed her hands on the armrests of her computer chair and pushed herself to her feet with gritted teeth. Once upright, she exhaled gratefully and teetered over to the bed, already praising her decision.

"Ten minutes, then I'm back at it," she resolved brightly. It only took her a few steps to reach the soft bedding and she dug her fingers into the down cover appreciatively. "Okay, maybe fifteen minutes." Jane turned around and backed herself onto the bed, immediately taking the position onto her side. Her hand reached out and grabbed the nearest small pillow, wedging it beneath her belly for comfort. After a few seconds she took in the smell of the freshly laundered sheets. Was Rafael instructing the housekeepers to tend to this room? She groaned, resolving to talk to him about that later.

Her eyes gazed out the window once again. So much had changed over the past seven and a half months. A part of her felt like she should still be out there in her tiny handkerchief dress , grabbing a quick snack with Lina before finishing out her shift. Or, more accurately, she should be at a school, covertly texting Michael dinner plans with her class diligently taking a test in the background.

But this was nice too, even in all its chaos. While the prospect of being a single mother still terrified her, it no longer felt like a fate meant for someone else. She'd accepted it as her destiny. The rest of the details would just have to present themselves in time.

The sound of the door clicking and creaking open jarred her out of her contemplation not even two minutes in. She wanted to flip over and see the intruder, but swift movements were just not that simple in this stage. Besides, she had no doubt as to who entered.

"You're actually using the bed!" Rafael's satisfied voice exclaimed. His smug, celebratory expression was clear as day, even if Jane couldn't physically see it. With a harrumph she rolled onto her back and turned her head towards her boss and the father of the child making simple movements so difficult. He looked torturously beautiful, smiling in his sea foam green fitted oxford shirt and gray tailored slacks. Jane could tell that he'd had his stubble perfectly trimmed this morning. It drove her insane, which she was sure he knew.

"That's karma for you," she said. "The one time I cave is, of course, the one time you drop by."

"That's a good thing, Jane. That's why I arranged for this, so that you could rest when you needed to."

"Again, that's sweet," she replied cautiously, "But I'm not the first pregnant woman to work here, Rafael. Was this offered to the others?"

Rafael shrugged his shoulders, unfazed. "Probably not, since none of them were the mother of my child."

Her face instantly grew hot. It was only after they kissed that he really started to refer to her that way, that affectionately. Before it was either stated as a mere fact, or she was noted as "carrying his child." This, however, had been colored in a quiet sort of hope that made her want to slink away and get out of his line of sight. She only questioned her decision to cool their budding relationship down when she was in his presence. Did he know how tough he was making this for her?

"Rafael…"

"I know, I know," he conceded, shoving his hands into his pockets and looking down at the pristine carpet. "I still get to be concerned about you, right? That's not something out of the ordinary for friends, is it?"

The way he would spit out the words friends, like the very word somehow rotted in his mouth, never escaped her. It also didn't deter her decision. "Nope. Not weird."

"Good," he nodded, returning his attention to her, "because I was beginning to think you were trying to push me out of the way entirely."

"Come on, you know I'm not trying to do that."

"So then why didn't you tell me about the doctor's appointment yesterday?"

Sighing, she lifted her hands to her eyes and rubbed. She promised to find Lina later and pinch her harshly for opening her big mouth. "The appointment was just a simple check-up. You didn't miss anything big."

"I want to _be_ there, Jane! " Rafael cried, crossing over to the bed in only a few steps. "I don't want to be on the outskirts of all this. Look, I get if you don't want to..." He trailed, already exasperated by the point he was about to make. They'd both grown tired of the vicious cycle that was him questioning why they couldn't be together and her explaining that the circumstances weren't right. She didn't know if he had come to accept it just as she had accepted her new lot in life, but he at least looked ready to give it a rest for one day. He blew out another sigh. "Still. I told you that I want to be there for every step and I meant it. Even if you don't want me in the room with you, I can at least stay in the lobby and talk to the doctor. I just don't want to be boxed out."

Guilty, Jane's eyes averted to his shoes. Once she considered his plea, she nodded. "You're right, Rafael. I should have told you. I'm sorry. I scheduled another appointment for two weeks from now." The hopeful raise of his eyebrows nearly caused her heart to beat out of the confines of her chest. For a second, she would have given him anything he wanted. "Do you…want to-"

"Yes," he blurted, finding the end of her question superfluous. They both emitted a nervous giggle, then there was silence.

"Can I join you?"

Jane's eyes grew wide at the unexpected request. "Uh –"

"Just for a moment," he assured her. His expression was just a little desperate. There was a certain vulnerability that came with laying in the comfort of this bed. It made it hard to deny him. She nodded, then scooted over to allow him room. Surprisingly, he wasted no time reclining his body until he was lying flat. She rolled onto her side and looked at him as he stared at the ceiling.

"Tough day?" she asked quietly.

"Tough few months," he murmured.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize." He turned his head so that he was laying soft eyes on her. "You've made it so much better."

Jane let out a stuttering breath, still blown back by his earnestness. Speechless, she simply dug her cheek deeper into the pillow. Then she noticed the mischievous quirk of his eyebrows.

"I mean," he continued in his soft voice, "even if you took my heart and ripped it to shreds."

Affronted, she reached over and walloped him on his forearm with a force that was a mix between playful and firm. "Hey! I would never!"

"Okay, maybe you didn't rip it, but you mangled it a little."

"Rafael!"

"I'm kidding! Jane, I'm _kidding_."

She knew that, but it still put her at ease to hear him say it. He flipped to his side to face her. "I know you wouldn't, by the way. I'm just still hoping you'll change your mind. I'm always hoping you'll change your mind."

"But you get where I'm coming from, right?" she asked hopefully. "I'm not trying to be heartless."

"I doubt you have the capacity to be heartless. I'm well-acquainted with heartless, remember?"

Jane smiled sympathetically. "I thought we're not supposed to talk about her."

"We're still not," he countered, though he sounded unsure, "I'm just saying that I don't view your reasons as heartless. A little bit unrealistic, maybe, but not heartless."

"Unrealistic?" she echoed, indignant. She raised her head a fraction so that she was no longer at eye level, but above him. "That's a little rude to brush of my concerns as unrealistic."

Rafael then propped up his head so that they were once level with each other. "I'm sorry, but they are! You said that we couldn't be together right now because of all the abnormal circumstances surrounding us, and you're right. Our story is…insane and outlandish and downright unbelievable in certain places. But I'm convinced that that's just us. We're clearly not meant for normal circumstances. If we were, then we probably would have never met at all."

This was the longest she'd ever allowed him to talk about the subject of them. As her breathing became shallower and her heartbeat pounded in her ears, she started to regret it. She just couldn't get her mouth to speak and put a stop to it.

"Jane, I know you think that they way I feel about you is entirely influenced by our baby-"

"It is," she insisted, her voice at a croak.

"I won't deny that it has something to do with it," he agreed without hesitation. Then, with a lick of his bottom lip, he slowed reached forward and placed a gentle hand on her belly. The baby immediately shifted. Jane wondered if he or she somehow knew who was trying to greet them, if her racing heart at his warm touch somehow gave a hint.

When his eyes made burning, intense contact with hers, the need for more oxygen became increasingly clearer with the lightness in her head.

"But if you think for one second," he continued, his tone lower, "that me loving you has nothing do to with you being an absolutely incredible woman – sharp, witty, nurturing, self-assured, positively _stunning,_ Jane – if you think it has nothing to do with that, then all I need is the chance to show you once and for all. That's it."

The last two words had come out in a hoarse whisper, and they tugged on her heart so harshly that the tears took no time at all to manifest. She was shocked still. He'd never said he loved her. Adored, cared for, wanted…never loved.

She should have let him talk sooner.

The hand on her stomach left brief to brush the falling tears off of her face. His thumb lingered on the ridge of her cheek long after the trails were wiped away. "I promise I didn't come up here to make you cry."

"Nice work, buddy," she joked, her voice clogged with tears. Her face grew even hotter as she sputtered a laugh to go with his. "What _did_ you come up here for, anyway?"

"I don't even remember," he shrugged, looking unbothered by the fact. "Whatever it was, it wasn't as important as this. Jane…let's just have our weird telenovela romance, okay? Before we know it the baby will be here and we'll be parents. Amazing parents; the parents you wanted for this child from the beginning. In the meantime, let's just take our crazy baggage and own it, joke about it, hell, be proud of it…but let's just love each other while we do. We can go for normal later, if that's what you want, but for now let's just love each other and have our family. Can we do that?"

And at that moment, Jane felt it: then desire to give in. It superseded the desire to be rational, or have a relationship that she could deem "normal." She just wanted him and everything he had to offer. She gave a smile that was slow to appear, but incredibly heartfelt.

"Do you really want to be my boyfriend that badly?" she asked, attempting to joke. Rafael didn't laugh. Instead, he maintained his intense glare.

"Trust me, I want to be much, much more than that. But let's start there."

The rest of the air in her system expelled in a great sigh. Almost instantly she felt her body yearn for a closeness that they hadn't had in month. Her hand rested on his shirt, just over his heart. Without further prompting, he pulled in closer and a rest a protective hand on her stomach as he leaned forward and kissed her gently. It took only a second for her to remember just how much she missed his lips, soft and confident. Her hands cupped his face as she pressed forward insistently, taking his bottom lip in-between hers. She could feel the hand on her stomach gravitate towards her side, his fingers trailing up and down reverently. He tugged her as close as her belly would allow. Neither of them felt a need to complain, for this was the closest they had been in a very long time.

She was beginning to feel lightheaded again, so she pulled away just after their tongues met. Their lips remained a hair's breadth apart.

"I missed you," Rafael whispered, his fingers digging just slightly.

"I missed _you_ ," Jane assured him. "And I'm trying not to focus on how unprofessional we're being right now –"

"Of course you're not," he laughed as he laid a quick kiss on her nose. The action made her snort, which made him laugh harder.

"I'm trying not to focus on that," she repeated, "but…can we just lay here for a few minutes?"

Smiling wide, he reached into his pocket and extracted his phone. With a flick of his thumb nail against the tiny switch on the side he silenced it and deposited it on the neighboring table. He returned to her fold, even closer than before. Rafael kissed her smiling lips, then wrapped his arms around her. "Yeah, we can. Let's just hope the boss doesn't find out."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed my first Jane the Virgin story! Please leave a review/comment if you can! I love and appreciate hearing from you greatly.


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